Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2009 Sep;28(9):1045-53.
doi: 10.1007/s10096-009-0745-1. Epub 2009 May 5.

Molecular diagnostics of intestinal parasites in returning travellers

R J ten Hove  1 , M van Esbroeck, T Vervoort, J van den Ende, L van Lieshout, J J Verweij
Affiliations

Molecular diagnostics of intestinal parasites in returning travellers

R J ten Hove et al. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis. 2009 Sep.

Abstract

A new diagnostic strategy was assessed for the routine diagnosis of intestinal parasites in returning travellers and immigrants. Over a period of 13 months, unpreserved stool samples, patient characteristics and clinical data were collected from those attending a travel clinic. Stool samples were analysed on a daily basis by microscopic examination and antigen detection (i.e. care as usual), and compared with a weekly performed multiplex real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis on Entamoeba histolytica, Giardia lamblia, Cryptosporidium and Strongyloides stercoralis. Microscopy and antigen assays of 2,591 stool samples showed E. histolytica, G. lamblia, Cryptosporidium and S. stercoralis in 0.3, 4.7, 0.5 and 0.1% of the cases, respectively. These detection rates were increased using real-time PCR to 0.5, 6.0, 1.3 and 0.8%, respectively. The prevalence of ten additional pathogenic parasite species identified with microscopy was, at most, 0.5%. A pre-selective decision tree based on travel history or gastro-intestinal complaints could not be made. With increased detection rates at a lower workload and the potential to extend with additional parasite targets combined with fully automated DNA isolation, molecular high-throughput screening could eventually replace microscopy to a large extent.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Number of all collected stool samples (n = 2,709) on a weekly basis between April 2005 and May 2006. Sharp increases of sample collections due to holidays are observed in August 2005 and at beginning of January 2006
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. World Tourism Organization (2001) Global Forecast and Profiles of Market Segments. Tourism: 2020 Vision, Vol 7. World Tourism Organization, Madrid, Spain. ISBN 978-92-844-0466-7
    1. {'text': '', 'ref_index': 1, 'ids': [{'type': 'DOI', 'value': '10.1056/NEJMoa051331', 'is_inner': False, 'url': 'https://doi.org/10.1056/nejmoa051331'}, {'type': 'PubMed', 'value': '16407507', 'is_inner': True, 'url': 'https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16407507/'}]}
    2. Freedman DO, Weld LH, Kozarsky PE, Fisk T, Robins R, von Sonnenburg F, Keystone JS, Pandey P, Cetron MS; GeoSentinel Surveillance Network (2006) Spectrum of disease and relation to place of exposure among ill returned travelers. N Engl J Med 354:119–130. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa051331 - PubMed
    1. {'text': '', 'ref_index': 1, 'ids': [{'type': 'PubMed', 'value': '16343382', 'is_inner': True, 'url': 'https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16343382/'}]}
    2. Ansart S, Perez L, Vergely O, Danis M, Bricaire F, Caumes E (2005) Illnesses in travelers returning from the tropics: a prospective study of 622 patients. J Travel Med 12:312–318 - PubMed
    1. {'text': '', 'ref_index': 1, 'ids': [{'type': 'DOI', 'value': '10.1111/j.1708-8305.2006.00045.x', 'is_inner': False, 'url': 'https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1708-8305.2006.00045.x'}, {'type': 'PubMed', 'value': '16884406', 'is_inner': True, 'url': 'https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16884406/'}]}
    2. Caruana SR, Kelly HA, Ngeow JY, Ryan NJ, Bennett CM, Chea L, Nuon S, Bak N, Skull SA, Biggs BA (2006) Undiagnosed and potentially lethal parasite infections among immigrants and refugees in Australia. J Travel Med 13:233–239. doi:10.1111/j.1708-8305.2006.00045.x - PubMed
    1. {'text': '', 'ref_index': 1, 'ids': [{'type': 'DOI', 'value': '10.1542/peds.108.3.608', 'is_inner': False, 'url': 'https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.108.3.608'}, {'type': 'PubMed', 'value': '11533325', 'is_inner': True, 'url': 'https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11533325/'}]}
    2. Saiman L, Aronson J, Zhou J, Gomez-Duarte C, Gabriel PS, Alonso M, Maloney S, Schulte J (2001) Prevalence of infectious diseases among internationally adopted children. Pediatrics 108:608–612. doi:10.1542/peds.108.3.608 - PubMed

MeSH terms